I'm not one to think we should impeach people lightly, or for political reasons, but this is clearly an instance where it is necessary. He has really messed up, and clearly broken the law.

Sign the petition to impeach Gonzales.

From Bill Scher, blogger for the Campaign for America's Future. An interesting post looking at the religion in politics issue from a different perspective.

A good quote:

Lots of ink has been spilled about how Democrats and liberals suffer from a "religion problem" -- a perceived hostility towards Christianity and religion in general. But Pew Research Center exit poll data from the 2006 midterm elections shows the opposite.

Democrats crushed Republicans among secular voters, broadly defined as those who attend church seldom (favoring Democrats 60% to 38%) or never (67% to 30%). Republicans retained strong support among those who attend church more than weekly. But among those who only go weekly -- the larger portion of the religious vote -- the Republican lead shrunk from 15 points to 7.

Read the whole thing here

I'm about week late on this one. Still worth posting because, its extremely telling, and there is a good chance you didn't know it happened.

The 100 Hours agenda is now in the hands of the Senate.

Madame Speaker Pelosi and the house democrats stood together passing clean, strong and progressive bills. Accomplishing this in the Senate is where the campaign faces its toughest challenge.

Already we've seen the right-wing conservatives demanding us to "Stay the Course"... or worse.

Bob Geiger and the AFL-CIO Blog broke this important story.

Two weeks ago 28 ultra-conservative Senators attempted to completely eliminate the minimum wage.

Brazenly ignoring the clear demands of the voters, they didn't just try to stop the much needed minimum wage increase, they wanted to destroy the federal minimum wage all together.

It is time working America gets their long over due raise. No, it's past time and we need to make that clear.

As Senator Jim Webb so eloquently stated in his rebuttal to President Bush's State of the Union....

Tonight we are calling on this President to take similar action.... If he does, we will join him. If he does not, we will be showing him the way.

So the same goes for Senator Republicans. Follow the will of the people, or we will be showing you the way.

Great new video from CAF

I know my blogging has been too light these weeks. I have at least two posts in my head and will try to get them out later tonight!

Haven't seen it, probably won't but this seems a little far fetched. Actually it screams of a persecution complex that is all to common in the right-wing fundamentalist camp.

Read more about how penguins hate America

Makes me wonder what we would have heard about other seemingly innocuous films or children's entertainment if the right-wing noise machine had been in full swing for longer.

The spin and damage control has already begun. This morning conservative pundits, are trying the same tired old strategy. When in trouble, blame it on “the gays”. As Tony Perkins of the Family Research Council states, "…when you hold up tolerance and diversity, this is what you end up getting." Saddening, but unsurprising that even in the face of such an outrage as a Congressmen using his position of power to prey on our children, zealot conservatives go into attack mode blaming everyone but those at fault.

Despite arguments that a repressive and intolerant ideology, that is radical moral conservative, made a breeding ground for this behavior (another case of ‘priests syndrome’) there is a legitimate and very real responsibly that falls on the shoulders of the republican leadership. Once again, instead of looking out for those whom they are to serve, the Republican power machine only protected their own interests.

This GOP leadership has taken care of itself only, and failed the American people time and time again. This has consequences for America. Due to the corruption and cronyism in the conservative elites there is increased terrorism, hundreds of thousands stranded in the Gulf, kids priced out of college, senior citizens unable to pay for their medications, an continued demand on foreign oil….

One year ago Katrina struck the Gulf Coast. I was living in Rochester, MN at the time, far away from the waters. I watched the news and saw the tragic response to Katrina. The response as others have pointed out was not an accident. It was not a surprise. It was a direct expression of the conservative governing strategy of Bush and the "my goal is to cut government ... down to the size where we can drown it in the bathtub"-republicans in Congress.

Soon after landfall I moved to DC. The area was still a mess and people were still trying to relocate. I took a train out to DC and on the way meet two people who were trying to escape the city. They had gone to a couple other places already and were looking for a new home. Going to live with one of their mothers if I remember correctly. They had nothing with them from New Orleans except the cloths there were still wearing.

The storm was a horrible event, the response was the disaster.

Lots of people are talking about the event today. Campaign for America's Future has a bunch of stuff up on the new Straight Talk Live.

Joe Loserman

Lamont's upset victory sends a clear message.

Voters are turning against the failed policies of the Bush administration, and the Congress that has rubber stamped them - particularly the debacle in Iraq.

Lieberman says he wants to go to Washington to "get things done." But he's already been getting things done. He's the champion of the Iraq war, corporate trade deals, capital gains tax cuts, off-the book stock options, privatization of Social Security, and political interference in Terry Schaivo's private tragedy.

In refusing to heed the verdict of the voters, Joe Lieberman just doesn't get it.

As Joe has done in the past he'll put his own selfish desire to stay in the Senate above all else.

"Holy Joe" made a sports analogy in his "concession" speech last night. But Joe this isn't the first half of a match. It's the play offs and there is no double elimination.

Joe hasn't just turned against the Democratic party, he has turned against Democracy.

This is a scary article. Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist is only concerned about suppressing whistleblowers and not about the legitimate issues raised by those whistleblowers. He supports turning a blind eye to possible crimes committed in the secret CIA detention centers. Read the whole article its scary: link

Campaign for America's Future is doing another cool campaign. Now they are doing a petition drive to try and force those who took money from ARMPAC to give the money to help Katrina survivors. It’s a great idea. It is another way to let our representatives take a side, to prove if they stand with the people, or they stand with Delay and his web of corruption.

Two links for this campaign.

One to sign the petition: link

…and two to see who took money from ARMPAC and who has given it to help Katrina survivors: link

I highly recommend signing the petition if you want to help erode support for Delay

ARMPAC for those who don't know is the PAC that Delay set up and it the focus and source of Delays money laundering indictments. Also here is some more info on ARMPAC from Wikipedia.

The recent indictments of "Scooter" Libby are finally bringing to light the tangled web of corruption that exists at the highest levels of the Bush Regime. Most people realize that Rove and Dick Cheney are also deeply involved in these crimes; however they are not the only ones complacent in these scandals. TomPaine.com has done the research and drawn a detailed map showing the true extent of this web of corruption.

As cool as the image is I've decided not to show it here it was taking up lot of bandwidth and slowing the site down. Find it here!!!

It's time for massive resignations and firings. It's time for impeachments. This is not a spot on a dress this is perjury, war, lies, deceit, conspiracy and cover-ups.

I blogged about this a couple days ago (link) so I thought I'd give an update.

The Campaign for America's Future, along with Voices for Working Families, ACORN, AFSCME, and SEIU, succeeded in their campaign to bring Katrina survivors to DC to speak to the press and our elected officials regarding the failures of the response and rebuilding efforts in the affected regions. 12 individuals from the effected region, many more then the 5 who were hoped for, spoke to the press and our countries leaders on Tuesday, October 25 2005.

I won't try to summarize the events, as other have already done so. The Campaign for America's Future has a great page summarizing the events here . They also have links at articles written about the event, participant bios, and videos from the events.

This is a must read article! This is about comments made by Colin Powell's right-hand man at the State Department, Larry Wilkerson. He finally opened up and discloses his true feelings about this administration extreme failures.

Great quotes include:
"It's hard to sell [manure]," Wilkerson said
"Seldom in my life have I met a dumber man."
he had viewed Condoleezza Rice as "extremely weak."
"we have courted disaster in Iraq, in North Korea, in Iran, and generally with regard to domestic crises like Katrina."

Link to article

The Campaign for America's Future is trying to bring Katrina survivors to Washington, DC. The idea is that their voices need be heard in DC, in the media and in front of politicians. Us bloggers can say how bad the disaster planning was, and how bad the republican's plans to rebuild the area are, but the voices of the victims is more likely to be heard. The individuals who are going haven’t been named yet, and I'll be interested in seeing who is chosen.

What is also impressive is that The Campaign for America's Future started a fundraiser yesterday asking for ONE dollar and they have already raised $17,411. Very impressive especially since I'd never have thought asking for a buck to work. Their goal seems to be $20,000.

Here is the link if you want more info: Link

As I discussed in a blog entry the 11th anniversary of the contract with America was the 27th of September. Robert L. Borosage has released an article for a real contract with America....

Full article: http://www.ourfuture.org/onmessage/borosage/20051024_boro_cwa.cfm

Teaser:

Robert L. Borosage

A Real Contract with America
10/24/2005 | Source: The Nation

Lethal incompetence and indifference in Katrina's wake. Republican House boss Tom DeLay indicted--twice. Senate Republican leader Bill Frist under investigation by the Securities and Exchange Commission. "Casino Jack" Abramoff's cynical cesspool of conservative corruption. Stagnant wages and rising prices. Quagmire in Iraq. Have Americans had enough? Will Katrina and corruption threaten the right's hold over Congress and open a broader challenge to the conservatism that has dominated our politics over the past twenty-five years? It's possible--but only if Democrats can make themselves a compelling force for change.

1994 and the Gingrich Revolt

The last successful effort to nationalize Congressional races in a nonpresidential year came in 1994, when Newt Gingrich and movement conservatives unfurled their Contract With America and shocked themselves by gaining fifty-four seats to take control of Congress, ending forty years of Democratic rule. That election offers pointed lessons for Democrats hoping for a similar reversal...

If the Supreme Court overturns Roe V. Wade or it is severally limits a woman's ability to have an abortion what will the public's reaction be? In most polls I've seen the majority of the people in the country support a woman right to choose, at least in some form. Will there be a moderate revolt if the Supreme Court swings far to the right? Thing could get a lot worse if this court goes as right as it seems to be going. Could this be a chance for the democrats to start winning more races as moderates experience first hand their rights getting striped away? Is this possible a chance to do what the democrats have needed to do for a long time, mainly take a proactive stance their progressive issues...?

If this does happen, if there is a moderate revolt to the repressive Supreme Court, we need the democrats' to be able to take advantage of this. We must start working NOW! We need to have our issues out in the public eye, already given to them as a better option, ready for when things get bad. We need a massive progressive movement to amend the constitution to include a Right to Privacy, explicitly! I'm willing to bet an over whelming majority of American (especially right wing libertarians) would support a constitution amendment to codify the individual's right to privacy in issues of the family, marriage, health care, education, speech, etc. Not only would a Right to Privacy amendment protect things like a woman's right to choose, sodomy (read with broadest meaning without the pejorative stigma), euthanasia, medical use of "illegal" drugs, etc. but it would also help over turn many of the provisions of the Patriot act. It's time for progressives to start actively campaigning for a constitution amendment codifying the Right to Privacy. The Right to Privacy is now only a right protected by a moderate Supreme Court.

How evil do you have to be to take out your political troubles on dying species? The weeks been bad for the House Republican but at least they get to kill some animals and destroy the environment....

Read the article I'm referring to here.

Ok so I understand the republicans want to put business and economic issues before environmental issues, but to take pleasure is getting to roll back the endangered species act? That I think actually shows an important aspect of the conservative facade. It shows that while they defend their action in a variety of ways, including economic necessity, their real motivation is actually very sadistic.

I can only hope that this quote was simply the fault of shitty reporting, but I'm not so sure given other things I've read this morning on this issue.

"This was the first test of our conference," and its ability to put together legislative victories without Delay’s leadership, said Rep. John Shadegg (R-Ariz.). "Clearly, we're not in turmoil."

When knowing things like this I think it clearly shows that the compassionate in compassionate conservatism is just a political ploy. The bigger problem is why don't the republican masses get out raged over this? Do republican in general really hate the environment too? Or do they really believe this is for the greater good of economic progress? And if so how can they believe it given the issues surrounding this story?